Our modern lifestyles are so manic, busy and hyperactive that we often have no time to enjoy our lives. In maximizing our efforts to pursue happiness, chase success and accumulate wealth, we miss out on life as it happens. We are so focused on "going" and "doing" and "having" that we settle for getting through the day instead of living and loving each day. Life becomes such a blur and the busyness is so chronic that it is almost impossible to locate ourselves in our own lives. We hope we might catch up with ourselves some time in the future.

Every authentic school of wisdom and spirituality teaches you that now is the most abundant moment of your life. They all agree that now is an eternal treasure chest dripping with everlasting gifts of peace, inspiration, grace and joy. And since time began, spiritual teachers have taught their students to "be here and now," to "enjoy the moment" and to "seize the day." And every spiritual student has repeatedly disregarded his or her teacher's wisdom—at first.

Exercise: One way to be more present in your life is to stop "doing," "going" and "having," and pay more attention to "being." How does this work? Well, you can start right now, by deciding "to be" more of what you want to experience. For example: If you want more love, be more loving; if you want to receive more, be more open; if you want to feel more abundant, be more grateful; and if you want to enjoy your life more, be more present.

By being more of who you really are,
you manifest more of what you really want.

Robert Holden, PhD, and his innovative work on happiness and well-being have been featured on The Oprah Show and Good Morning America and also in two major BBC documentaries, The Happiness Formula and How to Be Happy, shown to more than 30 million TV viewers worldwide. He is the author of the best-selling books Happiness NOW!, Shift Happens! and Success Intelligence. His latest book, Be Happy, is published by Hay House. Robert lives in London with his wife and daughter.